


The Shambles of Men

by sksdwrld



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Drabble, M/M, prison fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-13
Updated: 2013-08-13
Packaged: 2017-12-23 08:46:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/924295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sksdwrld/pseuds/sksdwrld





	The Shambles of Men

**Author's Note:**

  * For [smallbrownfrog](https://archiveofourown.org/users/smallbrownfrog/gifts).



Back before he was known as Mad-Eye Moody or even just Moody, Severus had known the defunct Auror as Alastor. They had been housemates, though it would have been a stretch to call them friends. Severus hadn't any friends, not then and certainly not now.

As he sat in the cell, his back was straight but his eyes could not help but follow Alastor's restless, shambling gate as he paced the length of the dungeon, scowling with all the ferocity of a caged cat.

"Sit down, Alastor. I can assure you that I am a model prisoner." Severus drawled.

Alastor startled at the sound of Severus' voice and whirled to face him, magical eye fixing on him momentarily before beginning its wild rolling again. "Nothing 'model' about you Snape. Too tall, too thin, too Death-Eater..."

"I could say the same for you, Alastor." Severus murmured, the corners of his mouth quirking slightly and only for an instant. "Too rotund, too wild, and missing far too many parts to be considered man..."

Alastor threw back his head and cackled. "Yet here we are."

"Here we are," Severus echoed. "What time is it?"

"Nearly midnight." Alastor quipped.

"There's not enough time," Severus lamented. There were too many words left unsaid, and the jailers shift change due too soon.

"No, I imagine not."

"We shared something once," Severus prompted, a fondness creeping into his voice.

"We were young then, pretty and unspoiled by this mess. Best to keep the memory pure instead of muddling it with the shambles of men we've become." Alastor said in his gravelly way.

"Well put." Severus sighed. "They'll come for me, you know. I'm nearly as important to their cause as I am to yours."

"Not 'ours', Snape? The turncoats stumbles in his own web of lies...

Severus sighed. "I have made two grave mistakes in my lifetime, and though intimately related, I can only remedy one. Hoping to find a way to absolve myself of the lifetime of pain I have needlessly suffered is my true cause, Alastor."

"There is no absolution...you can dull it or end it...nothing more."

"How astute." Severus said dryly.

Alastor held out his flask but Severus shook his head. He was certain the contents were more likely to give him gut rot than anything. Alastor took a deep breath and held it, then cocked his head as he exhaled. "I can make you forget, for awhile, at least. We can find solace in one another..."

"I am your prisoner..." Severus reminded.

"We both know the cell is a farce. When Dumbledore arrives..."

"Yes, but until then..." Severus raised an eyebrow. "Your reputation is on the line."

Alastor cackled again, his head thrown back in mirth. When he finished, he unlocked the door with a flick of his wand. "Come here you greasy git. We shouldn't need much time for what I have in mind..." he gestured down the corridor.

"Oh, Alastor, you're quite the romantic." Severus said, lifting his robes as he stood and moved with haste, Alastor falling into step behind him.

"Now there's a rumor best squashed before it starts." Alastor grunted, stabbing Severus' right buttock with his wand.

Severus shuddered but kept walking. "I am an excellent keeper of secrets, as you well know."

"Aye. And a good thing, too..."

-fade to black-


End file.
